The present invention relates to a portable radio telephone having a projecting antenna. The portable radio telephone may, for example, be a radio telephone such as a conventional handheld cellular telephone, or it may be a so-called smart radio telephone or personal organiser having radio frequency (RF) communication capabilities.
A handheld cellular telephone generally includes an antenna for transmitting and receiving radio frequency signals. Some handheld cellular telephones have antennas which are movable, for example, between retracted and extended positions.
European patent publication EP 0 516 490 shows an example of a movable antenna for a portable cellular radio telephone, in the form of a whip antenna which may be extended out of the housing of the portable telephone, or retracted into the housing of the portable telephone.
The Ericsson EH97 handheld cellular telephone shows another example of a movable antenna. Here the movable antenna is in the form of a rod antenna joined to the side of the cellular telephone housing so that it may rotate through 360 degrees. The antenna can be rotated manually by a user between a retracted position and an extended position (see FIG. 1).